Complaints Process

Do you have a complaint or a concern?

Website version of leaflet: Written September 2017/Ratified November 2017

Updated July 2017

We believe that Burnley Brow provides an excellent education for all our children, and that the Headteacher and other staff work very hard to build positive relationships with all parents. However, the school is obliged to have procedures in place in case there are complaints by parents. The following policy sets out the procedure that the school follows in such cases.

Burnley Brow School aims to be fair, open and honest when dealing with any complaint. We give careful consideration to all complaints and deal with them as swiftly as possible. We aim to resolve any complaint through dialogue and mutual understanding and, in all cases, we put the interests of the child above all other issues. We provide sufficient opportunity for any complaint to be fully discussed, and then resolved.

If you have a concern or complaint, please tell us about it. We welcome suggestions for improving our work in school. We would like to assure you that your complaint or concern will not affect schools relationship for you and your child in school.

What to do first:

Stage One: Complaint heard by Staff Member

If you have a concern or a complaint please contact a member of staff as soon as you can. All members of staff are willing to listen to your concern or complaint.

You may need an appointment to do this, and can make one by ringing or calling in to the school office. You can take a friend or relation to the appointment with you if you would like to.

We will make every effort to resolve your problem informally. We will make sure that we understand what you feel went wrong and we will explain our actions to you. We will ask you how you think we can resolve the issue.

If the issue remains, your concern or complaint can be heard by all senior members of staff e.g. Deputy Head Mrs Morgan, Assistant Heads; Mrs Malone and Mrs Bennion.

If the complaint concerns the Head teacher, you will be asked to speak to a senior member of staff.

If you talk to a Governor about a concern or complaint before approaching the school, Governors will ask you to speak to a member of staff at the school.

Stage Two: Concern/complaint heard by Head teacher

If the complaint or concern cannot be resolved by the member of staff then the Head teacher will become involved.

The Head teacher will try to resolve your concern or complaint.

If the complaint is about the Head teacher you may write to the Chair of Governors detailing your concerns. A form will be sent to you to complete. Chair of Governors. Mr Jeremy Sutcliffe, Burnley Brow Primary School, Victoria Street, Chadderton, Oldham OL9 0BY

If the complaint or concern cannot be resolved by the Head teacher or Chair of Governors and If appropriate the Chair of Governors, or a nominated Governor, will convene a Governing Body complaints panel. The complaints panel will ask you to put your complaint in writing. The Governors will ask you to complete a form which will be sent to you.

The Governors’ appeal hearing is the last school-based stage of the complaints process, and is not convened to merely rubber-stamp previous decisions.

Individual complaints would not be heard by the whole Governing Body at any stage, as this could compromise the impartiality of any panel set up for a disciplinary hearing against a member of staff following a serious complaint.

The Governing Body follows Oldham LA guidelines and copies are available from the school office. This guidance describes the procedures the Governing Body will follow and explains how these meetings operate.

Vexatious Complaints

This complaints procedure should limit the number of complaints that become protracted. However, there will be occasions when, despite all stages of the procedures having been followed, the complainant remains dissatisfied. If the complainant tries to reopen the same issue, the Chair of the Governing Body is able to inform them in writing that the procedure has been exhausted and that the matter is now closed.

Time Limits

Complaints will be considered, and resolved, as quickly and efficiently as possible. This complaints procedure will have realistic time limits for each action within each stage. However, where further investigations are necessary, new time limits can be set and the complainant sent details of the new deadline and an explanation for the delay.

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